Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands

Inscribed in 2021, the Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site is situated along an 80km corridor of the warm-temperate and humid Black Sea coastline. This ecosystem of ancient deciduous Colchic rainforests, wetlands, and percolation bogs, which survived the glacial cycles of the ice age, are home to a highly diverse array of flora and fauna. The high density of endemic and relict species includes approximately 1,100 species of plants and around 500 species of vertebrate animals including the threatened Colchic Sturgeon. The site is also a key stop over for many species of migratory birds through the Batumi bottleneck.

The peatlands of the Colchic mire region, which are closely interlinked with lowland Colchic rainforests, also reflect the mild and extremely humid conditions there. These allow for the existence of percolation bogs, the simplest functional type of mires, only occurring in the Colchis mire region.

Read more about this site here.